“When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. The sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run from him, because they don’t recognize the voice of strangers.”     John 10:4-5 HCSB

One thing that is so important to teach our children today is to beware of strangers. My precious little niece who is now 9 years old was friendly and kind from the time she was able to talk. It was not uncommon for people to want to talk to her while she sat in the shopping cart. Having retired from law enforcement, I began early on trying to teach her to beware of strangers. Her parents did the same thing. I find it sad that we have to do so, but if you watch the news you know that many people love to prey on unsuspecting, innocent children.

In our scripture passage today, Jesus is using symbolism to try to convey several points to his followers. Sheep are not extremely intelligent animals and left on their own, they tend to get themselves in trouble. This is why it is so important that they have a good shepherd to look out for them. There are many instances in the Bible where Jesus refers to Himself as a shepherd and to us as His sheep. Psalm 23 is a beautiful illustration of this.

When predators go after children, they lure them in. Sometimes they ask them to help look for their lost puppy. They may offer them candy or ice cream. This is how the devil lures us in. He offers us something that sounds and looks good. The problem is that once we accept his offer, we are in big trouble. We are needing our shepherd to come and bail us out of the jam that we have gotten ourselves into.

Like unsuspecting children, we fall for the devil’s schemes often times because we are not listening to the voice of our shepherd. If we are not keeping an open line of communication with Jesus through prayer and Bible study, we are more susceptible to the devil’s deception. By praying and studying our Bible we keep the shepherd close by. We are told in James 4:8 that if we draw near to God, He will draw near to us.

The best way to keep our children safe is to stay close to them. Jesus doesn’t force us to stay close to Him, we have to choose to do that. We have to choose to be in His presence continually. We have to choose to listen to His voice through Bible study and to talk to Him through prayer.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve fallen prey to the devil’s schemes before. He promises brownies and ice cream and delivers broccoli. Actually, it’s way worse than broccoli.

During these times when I wasn’t as close to God as I should have been and fell for the devil’s schemes, I am so thankful that God heard my cry. He came with his rod and his staff to pull me out of the mess I had gotten myself into. He helped to turn my mess into my  message.

He will do the same for you. If, like a sheep, you have gone astray and wandered from your shepherd, it’s not too late. You can still draw near to Him. You can call out to Him. You can confess your sins and repent and He will cleanse you from all unrighteousness (1John 1:9).

If you stay close to Jesus, you won’t listen to the voice of the stranger. Instead, you will run from him. You will not be susceptible to the devil’s schemes. Jesus wants you to be safe. He wants you to stay close to Him and avoid stranger danger. Trust in Him today to guide you and keep you safe.

Have a great day!